2019 NFL Draft: Steelers select DE Sutton Smith with 6th round pick

27

Apr 2019

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The Pittsburgh Steelers have selected Northern Illinois OLB Sutton Smith with their 6th round pick.

Entering the 2019 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers had a number of draft needs which they needed to address. After the first two days of selections, there were still positions of need to help the black-and-gold get to the next level in 2019. There have been numerous thoughts and debates regarding what the team will do on Day 3 of the NFL Draft.

When the dust settled, the Steelers have selected Northern Illinios pass rusher Sutton SMith, with their sixth round pick of the draft.

For those who may not know much about Sutton as a player, this is his overall breakdown of his game, per his NFL Draft Profile:

Smith was named the Missouri Large School Player of the Year as a senior running back (more than 2,000 rushing yards, 32 total touchdowns) but received no FBS offers except from Northern Illinois. It did not take long for Huskies coaches to discover that his place was on defense. Smith played in all 12 games as a reserve pass rusher as a redshirt freshman (15 tackles, two for loss, one sack) and then utterly dominated his competition over the next two years. He was a consensus All-American in 2017, as well as a finalist for the Ted Hendricks Award as the nation’s best defensive end and the MAC Defensive Player of the Year. He set a school record and led the FBS with 2.3 tackles for loss per game (29.5 total), ranked third in the country with 1.08 sacks per game (14), also finishing with 63 total tackles, three passes defensed, and three fumbles forced. Smith’s production continued in 2018, again being named a Ted Hendricks Award finalists, earning multiple All-American awards, and receiving MAC Defensive Player of the Year honors. In 14 starts he posted 61 tackles and finished among the nation’s leaders with 26.5 tackles for loss, 15 sacks, three forced fumbles, and two blocked kicks.

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ draft needs in the remaining rounds of the draft now would be considered: Safety, defensive line among other positions.

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